Racism has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia, including in Victoria. Coordinated actions, political leadership and intensive collaboration between governments and communities are fundamental to avoid negative outcomes from the pandemic, which can worsen the sense of disconnection and isolation in our communities.
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the fore the strength that emerges when solidarity is practiced and individualism gives way for a deeper understanding of living in a community. With physical isolation being a feature of the “new normal” for months now, and potentially for some time ahead, many people have discovered our shared human vulnerability and are developing new ways of interacting socially and maintaining a sense of belonging to community.
Whilst the pandemic has offered us a moment to realise “we are all in this together,” it has also heightened fear and anxiety across society. In addition to the psychological impact of the virus itself, other stressors such as financial instability, family ruptures, and inability to plan ahead, have all contributed to a scenario in which inequality can increase and social divisions intensify. In this context, the rise of the movement in the midst of the global pandemic is a great reminder that despite the idea that “we are in this together,” racism and social exclusion, deepened through institutional practices, continue to divide us.
In Australia, the leadership exercised by the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the movement challenged non-Indigenous Australians to consider structures that permit racism to remain strong yet remain unspoken outside of target communities. The Victorian Government’s decision to work with the First People’s Assembly towards a truth and justice process, announced on 11 July 2020, is a remarkable step forward. Without the work of truth telling, racism is likely to continue to be the source of exclusion, not only for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, but for any group that can be targeted based on racial, religious and cultural characteristics.
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